Éncore, Mon Princess Tutu
by KunoichiRena
Summary: Fakir is being controlled by Drosselmeyer and Tutu is given another chance at being a human if Five Stardust of purity is returned to Fakir. The one giving the chance, however, remains a mystery to Ahiru. Will she be able to find the stardust in time?
1. Pas De Deux

AN: Wakateru….gomen ne. Baka no boku. I shouldn't be writing this with so many stories behind.

Pas De Deux

_**Once Upon a time, there was a duck who became a girl, who became a Princess to save a young man's heart. She loved watching him dance, but his eyes were filled with loneliness. She decided to help him get his heart back, but he never ended up loving her. Slowly, she fell into despair until a gallant knight showed up. A raven's half daughter Princess saved the Prince's heart, and they slew the monster raven together after the kind Princess gave up her half of the Prince's knight, thus returning her to a duck. The knight had become useless and wrote of her demise, tears pouring from his eyes as he had done so. He ripped away her human form as he wrote the Princess's story with a wonderful disdain, writing of the Prince as he finished off the monster raven. When all was thought as a happy ending, where the Princess Raven would be wed to the Prince, the Princess guised as a duck never voiced her own feelings to the Knight. Her tragic tale of never to express her feelings towards the knight slowly ate at her soul, doomed to forever toil in her burning chest of desire. **_

'_**One last Pas De Deux…'**_

_**She thought, but as a duck, knew that it would never come to be. Then again, if she had danced one last Pas De Deux, she would ask for one last other thing and one thing would lead into the other, so she never dwelled on the situation. **_

_**Slowly, her sadness became evident. The knight had become engrossed in his new project and forgot all about the duck. Slowly, duck stopped trying to converse with the knight altogether and swam circles around the pond, thinking of the Prince and the Princess Raven. Were they finally happy? Had giving up the piece of the Prince's heart that turned her into a human gone in vain? She had hoped not, or her own unhappiness would have been all for naught.**_

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"One, two, three four, one, two, three, four…"

Neko-sensei had been counting the steps for the girls as they danced. Silently, the fragile little duck watched enviously as the girls twirled around in a pirouette in their fancy en pointe shoes. She wanted to become a girl again. How she longed to once again speak with the ones she loved. Her friends, Pike and Lillie, both never asked questions why the clumsy girl had mysteriously vanished from their lives, filling her with nothing but a void feeling. Her only companion had been the Knight known as Fakir, but he locked himself in his room the past few days and never listened to the pleading quacks coming from the duck's mouth.

'_I wish I could see Mytho and Rue again…'_

She thought, walking away from the school and towards Fakir's house.

"Oh, Ahiru-chan…"

The duck's head snapped up, seeing a person hiding in the bush. Curious, she waddled over to the bush, a man held out a gloved covered hand, ordering her to stop.

"No, don't come any closer. I know who you are, Princess Tutu."

Ahiru began quacking uncontrollably, trying to deny the facts, but the voice boomed again, "silence!"

She gulped, quieting down.

"I can change you back into a girl, but there is something that I need for you to do."

Her head cocked to one side, wondering what it could be that he wanted.

"The Prince has gone with the Princess yet you still are not happy."

Ahiru looked down, no sound escaping past her bill.

"I see. I want you to find and bring me five things that are beyond these town walls."

Again, Ahiru couldn't help but feel curious.

"I will give you the power of the Princess Tutu and a human, but in return, the items that must be found are in the same shape as this…"

Her other hand flew out from the shadows and seemed to be connected to the shadow itself. A pendant in the shape of a teardrop was the color gold. She placed it around her neck, turning her into a naked female human.

"You can keep that-"

"What do you need the rest of the pieces for!?"

"They are called stardust. Fakir is the medium in whom you shall return the stardust to. Five stardust from pure souls. In order for Fakir to be freed from the clutch Of Herr Drosselmeyer, you must return innocence to Fakir. Drosselmeyer is trying to take control over the Knight through his writing."

Confused, Ahiru tried to piece the information together.

"Drosselmeyer…can't have control over Fakir anymore…who are you?!"

There was a feminine chuckle and then silence.

"W-wait! Don't leave!"

There was murmuring all around her, she turned around to see mothers hiding their children's eyes. Ahiru looked down and blushed horribly, covering her body as she let out a loud quack, changing back into a duck.

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"Fakir…Fakir…? Can you open the door?"

Ahiru spoke to the Knight through the door, hearing nothing.

"Fakir…I think we're in another story…Drosselmeyer-"

There was a now masculine laugh from behind the door, Fakir opening it. His eyes were sunken in with his cheekbones sticking out.

"F-Fak-"

"Fakir isn't here now, Ahiru-chan."

"Drosselmeyer…"

"Another story you say, hm? Whatever gave you that idea?"

"What have you done to Fakir!?"

"Ooh, Ahiru-chan, it seems as if you are human. This isn't good. Ah well. It makes a nice story."

Ahiru grew mad and ran out the door, tears streaming down her face. She came to a slow stop, sinking to her knees.

'_Just when I thought I could be with Fakir as a normal girl, I have to find Fakir's stardust and Drosselmeyer comes into our lives again.'_

She thought to herself, hiccupping slightly. She heard a distant snare drum, turning her head to see Uzura coming her way.

"It's good to see Ahiru again-zura!"

The small puppet ran the braided-hairs way, hugging her.

"We're in another story again together-zura!"

Ahiru's bottom lip trembled as she began to cry again, Uzura panicking.

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Ahiru finally managed to send Uzura away to keep an eye on Fakir, but she silently wished that she never wanted to turn into a human again. Night had fallen and she didn't know where to go. She heard the school bell go off for the hour, approaching the ballet wing.

'_One last Pas De Deux…'_

She remembered herself saying as a duck. Slowly, she jimmied the door handle, opening it and walked inside. She ran her hand on the rails, the supply closet open.

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Coming out of the closet, she was dressed in a ballet tutu and en pointe shoes. She walked to the center of the room, imagining music playing. She slowly began to dance a Pas De Deux alone. Even though she felt a little foolish for doing so, it felt so right. It was literally a pas de deux…a no two. Not the ballet translation, but the literal French translation. There was no two people dancing the duo ballet, just a one person.

Quiet tears trickled down her face as she twirled around, leaping from one side to the other as gracefully as she would when as Princess Tutu.

Slowly, she spun around and wobbled, sinking to her knees. She brought a hand up to her face, trying to wipe away her tears to no avail. Human at the cost of being controlled again in a story…did she really want that?

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AN: Pas de Deux is French for 'no two.' I tried explaining that in the story, but if you didn't catch that, I don't blame you. I don't think I explained it right. AND YES, it's short because it's the beginning.


	2. Grand Battement en Arrière

AN: Princess Tutu ain't mine. Git over it, ye dern kids. LAWLZ. –insert sweatdrop- Yeah, I know I went too fast. I'm slowing it down now…I think I am…..O.o

Grand Battement en Arrière

_Once upon a time, there was a man who was nothing more than a carpenter. All day, he would shave wood with his knife until it was a wonderful masterpiece, but he never did anything else. It was as if only the knife and wood existed. For days, he continued on with his work. A woman passed by and asked him, "why do you carve as if there is no tomorrow?" Slowly, but surely, the man responded wisely, "I only live once, and with my eyesight slowly failing me, I will not be able to see those that I love. My hands will tremble and cannot hold the knife. At least, with this final art, I will be able to feel that which I love." The woman, pleased, slowly made her way home. _

_Soon after, the man fell ill and his eyesight left him. The woman then, came beside him as his final hours were beckoning. "I will never be able to finish my work…I will never feel my love…"_

"_Yes, you will…for I am right here."_

_The man, unbeknownst to him, never knew that the woman had paid him a visit everyday after to bring him his food and water. She had seen the sculpture of herself in which the carpenter was creating. His love for her was so great that he wanted nothing else in the end but to finish the work of art to preserve her beauty forevermore and hopefully, be granted her love. She leaned in and planted a kiss on his forehead and then each of his eyelids, the hand on his chest stopped moving and his life ending._

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"Aaaaahiiiiiiiruuuuuuuuuu!"

The female turned her head to see Lillie and Pike running up to her the next morning.

"You're back! Where have you been? Sneaking off with Mytho, hmmmm?"

"L-Lilie…n-no! That's not what happened! I-"

She stopped herself from talking when she saw Fakir turning a corner and walking her way.

"Ahiru, come with me."

It sounded like Fakir this time, sure, but was it really him?

"Ooooh…Ahiru was with Fakir!"

"I knew it!"

Pike responded, the two slowly slithering away with sly smirks on their faces.

"Fakir…is that really you...?"

"Moron, who else would it be?"

"B-but Drosselmeyer-"

"What did you just say…?"

"A-ah, nothing! Don't worry about it!"

She waved her hands in front of her, walking past Fakir and then turned back to him, slowly taking a step back.

"Why are you a girl…?"

"I-"

Fakir clenched his fists, obviously angry with the news.

"What did you do…?"

He tried to keep calm, though his voice told otherwise. Ahiru grew quiet. She didn't know whether or not to tell him the deal she made with the Shadow Woman. After all, Fakir did have a bad temper at times.

"Well…?"

"I…made a wish and it came true."

Ahiru took another step backwards, trying to avoid him altogether, but he kept walking forwards.

"Ahiru-"

"Drosselmeyer is making you write a story!"

Ahiru covered her mouth, Fakir's eyes widening. She didn't mean for it to slip up.

"What!? Did he give you a pendant to make you a girl again!?"

"Not Drosselmeyer! It was a woman this time!"

"You don't even know her name?!"

"Fakir, calm dow-"

He grabbed her wrist and held her up, hurting her arm.

"F-Fakir, let go, please!"

"You're taking orders from someone you don't even know?! How stupid are you!?"

"I'm doing this for you too!"

Ahiru tried to defend herself, only angering the raven haired boy into shaking her arm violently.

"For me!? I didn't ask for anything from you!"

Tears welled in Ahiru's eyes. It was only then did the male decide to stop shaking her and set her down steadily.

"If I become Princess Tutu, I can find your stardust and you'll be free from Drosselmeyer…"

Ahiru squinted her eyes and turned around, running past Fakir.

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"Ahiru-chan…"

The Shadow Woman's voice called, Ahiru turning to see the gloved hands once again in front of her.

"Have you not found stardust yet?"

She shook her head; a mother-like 'tsk' came from the shadows from behind the tree.

"I have something that might help you. Here…"

A feather materialized from the palm of her hand, floating towards Ahiru.

"The first leap is the hardest, and you'll always most likely fall, but a gentle mother's touch is all you need to get back up."

"Gentle mother's touch…?"

"That's right. Take it. It may or may not help you find what you're looking for, but that takes you to anywhere you wish to go…"

Ahiru took hold of the base of the feather, recognizing it to belong to a swan.

"How can I find the stardust pieces with this? How do I know how to find them!?"

"That is up to the pieces themselves. I am not even alive in this world, I cannot do anything much to help, but for the things that I can do, I will."

Ahiru nodded, holding the feather close to her.

"What can I call you…?"

"Mother…I am the Mother of the gallant and brave—the strong and kind. I have borne those who will someday look up to me for guidance. I am their Mother."

Ahiru smiled and gave a rapid nod.

"Do you know where I can start?"

"Where ever so you may please. Just think where Fakir would hide his innocence and you will be taken there. Be cautioned, though…this feather may bring harm to you because of people wanting to lay their hands on it."

"I will, thank you, Mother."

Ahiru watched the hands disappear and she was alone again. She held the feather out at an arms reach, staring at it as if it were a hoax.

"I want to go to the ballet school…"

She thought, her body suddenly feeling light and the next second as heavy as a piece of lead.

"A-Ahiru-chan…appearing in the middle of class like this…out of nowhere…is it possible that…you came back to….m-m-m-m-m-marry m-me…?"

Ahiru felt opened her eyes to reveal a hollow look, her body beginning to move on its own.

'_What's happening, Mother…?'_

Ahiru's pendant began to glow a silver color, her body dancing on its own accord.

"Ahiru-chan, what's…"

Her form slowly changed to that of Princess Tutu while performing a pirouette, she twirled her hands over her head and held it out towards Neko-sensei. She smiled kindly, not being able to control her body.

"A-ah…"

"Dance with me, Neko-sensei…I will decline your offer of marriage, but I can ease that pain by expressing it through a physical form…"

The other students were in complete awe.

'_I-I can't control my body!'_

'_Relax, my daughter. You are you and nothing is controlling you, there is only a barrier from you fully accepting to become Princess Tutu again, and that is the wanting to love Mytho. Love someone, and you will be in complete control of yourself once again.'_

"Fakir."

The name escaped her lips just as she preformed a grand battement en arrière with Neko-sensei, a stone of stardust crystallized above the dancer's heads, Tutu lifted her arms up in the air so it collected in her hands.

"Thank you, Neko-sensei…for that dance that was as pure as your intentions were to love a woman."

She bowed, the cat teacher, in complete awe, stood in the same position until he began to clean behind his ears in embarrassment.

"I think Neko-sensei is going to go insane soon."

Pike explained to Lillie, she nodding in approval. Tutu began to make her exit from the school doors, holding her first piece of stardust close to her chest, the feather tucked away inside her pendant.

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"How was that!?"

Tutu kept running, trying to reach Fakir's house as quickly as possible.

"My daughter, you were wonderful! Just as expected from you!"

Mother praised, Tutu slowing down.

"Mother…why do I feel….so sleepy…"

Tutu slowly changed back into Ahiru, the stardust leaving from her hands and embedding itself in Ahiru's pendant. Her vision slanted to one side, her knees buckling forwards.

"You are not used to being out of control of your body and the stardust itself takes up a lot of power to just hold in your hands. The power of innocence and purity has a price of weariness to the soul. The necklace I gave you will carry it for you until you have reached its master."

"Fakir…he will be angry at me…"

"He will, yes, but it is also Drosselmeyer who shall be adding his own anger to Fakir's."

Ahiru nodded, a faint smile appearing on her face before her vision blanked out on her.

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Ahiru's eyes opened, Uzura standing directly above her with curious eyes.

"Oh, she's awake-zura."

An enraged Fakir stared intently at Ahiru, his hands linked together near his mouth and nose while leaning over in a chair.

"What happened?"

"Neko-sensei…has a pure soul…?"

Ahiru explained more to herself than to Fakir, she sitting up. Her gaze turned towards him and held nothing but happiness. Her delicate hands raised her pendant towards him and a piece of stardust came out, hovering in the air between them.

"Your stardust…I had help finding this one and-"

He knocked it away, it falling to the ground with a twinkling sound.

"I'm not being controlled by Drosselmeyer, so wherever you got that stupid idea, you better forget about it."

The female's cheeks puffed in anger, Uzura picking up the piece in curiosity while examining it in the light.

"What have you been writing these days, then!?"

"I-"

In truth, he had no recollection of any words written down on the paper in the room. Everything had been as if life had passed in a mere second.

"I don't need you to help me. My story is the town's story. Nothing more."

Ahiru took the stardust from Uzura and placed it in Fakir's hands, Uzura dizzying off to one side and falling asleep on the floor. She saw a hollow look in his eyes as if he recognized the piece. Her hands covered his, pressing them into his chest as the stardust broke apart in glittering particles, entering his body. Blue orbs met light brown; a yell belonging to another man was heard. Fakir twisted his head in every direction, trying to find the source of the yell.

"You can't see Drosselmeyer…why do you think Uzura is back…?"

Once again, Fakir stood up quickly and refused to believe anything Ahiru said.

"I'll be busy in the room. Don't do anything useless, moron."

Anger radiated off Ahiru until the door shut behind the male, her eyes now filled with worry and doubt.

"I have no idea how to explain anything properly to you…I'm sorry….Fakir."

"Hush, my daughter. You mustn't worry too much over him. He's trying to piece everything together in his mind and doesn't want to believe that Drosselmeyer is taking over his soul when he's writing."

Ahiru saw Mother's hands emerge from the shadow coming from under the door that contained Fakir. The gloved hands touched Ahiru's forehead with the backside and pushed her down on the bed again.

"Rest, my child. There is much that I need to explain to Fakir myself one day, but you must not tell him anymore or Drosselmeyer will keep him in there for a longer time."

Mother's hands brought the cover up higher on Ahiru, she suddenly feeling sleepy once again.

"What story is he writing this time, Mother…?"

"The story in which the town perishes…I cannot allow that to happen."

"Why do you care so much about what happens to Fakir…?"

There was a stagnant pause from the voice in the shadows, followed by low humming.

"Mother…?"

"He is my son, I cannot allow him to perish."

"Your son?"

"Yes…my real son that I gave birth to. You will have to read Fakir's story if you wish to save the town and him."

"He doesn't let anyone read his stories…"

"You have to. Go to sleep. I shall try and coax Drosselmeyer away from Fakir even if it is a little while."

The blue orbs were now hidden by the female's eyelids, sleep taking over her.

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AN: Ano….HI! I think I rushed the end and I am very sorry if I have!


	3. Arabesque Penchée

AN: just because I re-watched Princess Tutu

Arabesque penchée

_**Once upon a time, there lived a lonely young woman who couldn't speak. Everyday, she longed to speak to her emotions to another young man. When she couldn't bear the burden of a heavy heart, she practiced dancing. For nine years she learned how to dance on graceful feet and how to finally express her feelings. When she finally went to the young man that she loved, she had found out that he had married and had children. In grief, she danced away in seclusion until her feet bled. A voice called to her, 'are you lonely?' In reply, she danced a sorrowful dance. To her surprise, the form of a man appeared before her shaped together with leaves and the wind. He began dancing alongside of her as he watched her cry in bitter silence but continued to try and convey her feelings. Soon enough, when she could no longer dance, she fell to the ground. The man wrapped her feet in leaf bindings and turned his head up to her. 'You have shown me the feeling of love and loneliness. As a forest god, I shall grant you a wish.' Instantly, she thought of tearing the young man away from his lover, then she thought of having her voice returned to her, instead, she smiled. The forest god gave her a voice so that she could speak with him. 'I wish for the man I loved the best luck in life.' The forest god granted her wish and seemed to disappear. The leaf bindings fell from her feet, revealing them to be completely healed. Once again, she began dancing. The next day, when people went searching for her, they found her image had been shown to be inside a tree. Whenever light passed in between the leaves, they could swear that they had seen the figure of a dancing ballerina alongside twirling leaves. They say that she had been spirited away by the forest god, however there is another rumor that she had died and came back as a ghost.**_

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"The basics, girls, remember the basics!"

Neko-sensei directed everyone. Ahiru stretched as much as she could, her mind wandering. Class was nearly over, but she didn't think too much of it. If anything, she wanted to stay longer with her friends and what she knew was real.

"Ahiru."

Everyone tensed up to hear Ahiru's name being called. Neko-sensei beckoned her over. She ran towards him in a ballet fashion that Tutu would do. Neko-sensei smiled as she gave him a questioning look while holding a pair of en pointe shoes.

"I don't know how you did it, but you are now ready for en pointe shoes."

She gasped as her eyes widened.

"Really!?"

"I have seen major improvement in you and I think that even with your wandering mind, you deserve them. Though, do those thoughts wander to m-m-marriage?"

"No…not really. Thank you!"

She stated almost a little too bluntly. She took the shoes and wandered to the side in awe, undoing the straps from around each other to stare at them. Pike and Lillie ran to her and hugged her.

"Wow, Ahiru! You managed to get the shoes finally!"

Lillie hugged her tighter. Ahiru placed them on her feet almost expertly and stood up, trying them out. With surprising confidence, she went on her toes with her arms in a circle under her. Now all eyes turned to her. For some reason, it was as if Tutu took over. She walked a bit en pointe until a small smile graced her lips, causing her to lean forwards flat footed. She kept doing so with her leg in the air until she had preformed a perfect arabesque penchée, gracefully touching her toes and bringing herself up when that was done, she went en pointe again and performing a few fouettes in a row. There was a sudden cry of pain coming from her as she fell to the ground, blood soaking her shoes. Neko-sensei ran over to her with her friends, quickly taking off her shoes to see that several of her toenails had torn off and several blisters had burst. He looked up at her in amazement.

"Have you ever worn toe shoes before? Blisters like these don't develop within a few minutes…never mind that, you were spectacular! Where did you learn that!?"

Ahiru didn't answer. How could she? Say that she was Princess Tutu from the Prince and Raven storybook?

"I…don't know…"

"Oh! Maybe giving you toe shoes was a wonderful idea! You have blossomed into a wonderful ballerina dancer!"

He was beaming in joy but left Ahiru confused. She could never usually do that…how did she manage to do it? Only Tutu could…

"Go get a male from the other dance class to bring Ahiru-chan to the infirmary."

Neko-sensei instructed a girl. She nodded and ran off. Everyone stared at Ahiru in amazement, but Ahiru was more amazed than they were. Her feet were throbbing in pain, yet she unexpectedly began to stand.

"Ahiru?"

"A-ah, I'm alright, really!"

She tried assuring them, her body re-tying her shoes onto her feet. Music began playing from the piano, but no one was actually sitting down in front of it to play the piano. Ahiru kept dancing, thunder sounding from outside. Everyone stared at her in shock as she started off with petits battements and went onto brise. She stopped herself from crying out in pain as her bloodied feet made imprints on the ground.

"Ahiru, stop! You're going to wreck your feet!"

Neko-sensei cried, trying to stop Ahiru but the light of an unknown force pushed him backwards, making him hiss. The ballerina's movements were graceful until you looked at her feet. There was a sudden crack that silenced everyone. Ahiru let out a cry of pain but she still kept dancing. Tears fell from her face now as she sobbed. Neko-sensei kept on trying to help his student but the unknown force kept repelling him. From under her leggings, her ankles began to swell and turn blue. Neko-sensei still couldn't do anything to get close to Ahiru. Her friends tried calling out to her in vain. Nothing was getting through and she couldn't stop. Finally, the music died down and she was able to finally control herself again. Her sobs racked through the room, drowned out by the thunder. A loud crack was heard followed by screams. The roof groaned and broke through as a tree went crashing into the school roof. The girls scrambled into safety, leaving Ahiru behind. She pulled herself near the tree, waiting for the help that never came. The students had all but abandoned the school to safety.

When the storm cleared, there were shouts and calls for missing students. Apparently, more than one tree had fallen into the school.

"Fakir's story…"

Ahiru guessed, knowing that lightning couldn't strike so close to each other in such a way. She tried to stand on her feet but knew that it was all in vain. They wouldn't listen to her.

"AHIRU!"

Fakir's voice resonated above everyone else's own. She was soaking wet, tired, hurt, and she wanted to go home. Ahiru tried calling out to Fakir but her mouth was covered by a gloved hand.

"Don't call to Fakir just yet…"

"Mother…? Why…?"

"Drosselmeyer is close. I'll tell you when."

Ahiru was silent for a while. A black and white cat sat in front of the broken window for a few seconds just staring at Ahiru. She gave it a hard stare and stuck out her tongue, making the cat hiss and jump away.

"Call for him now…that cat was a spy."

"Wait! Can you tell me what happened to my body before…!? You must know…!"

"Call him before the cat returns."

She nodded and took in a deep breath.

"Fakir!"

Mother's hand disappeared as Ahiru's voice cracked to call her friend. There was running and shuffling.

"Ahiru!"

"I'm over here, Fakir!"

She called again, her eyes watering. She was going to be saved. Fakir jumped over the tree and ran beside her. His breathing was hard and forced. Had he run all the way? He suddenly sighed, kneeling.

"Are you alright? Let's go home-"

He noticed her feet, making him gasp. He was about to question her but he ended up letting out a frustrated growl.

"It's not my fault…I couldn't stop dancing…"

Ahiru tried to explain. He shook his head and turned his back to her.

"Get on."

His simple words scared her. Nonetheless, she obliged to his words and climbed onto his back. All along the way home, he stared at her wounded feet.

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The sound of a ticking clock woke up the female. Her feet felt as if daggers were still pierced through them and her leg muscles ached with a dull pain.

"Ah, you woke up-zura!"

"Uzura…"

Uzura began beating her drum loudly, Fakir opening the door to his study instantly and went to her side. He instantly grabbed her hand and began apologizing. She blinked a few times, not knowing what to do.

"I was the one who wrote out the story!"

"Ah…I thought so…"

"Don't say that so bluntly!"

He yelled to her, making her sweat drop comically. She sat up and took her hand away from him, looking down at her feet buried under the covers.

"It's not your fault…it's Drosselmeyer…I don't blame you at all."

Ahiru smiled innocently, making Fakir slap his forehead.

"When you say it like that it makes me look like the bad guy…"

He scratched his head and gasped as she began pulling the covers off her legs to check the damage. Gasping, she saw that her ankles had swollen to match her calves. Her head fell to the side as comical tears slid down her face.

"Ugly…"

"I'll stop writing the story for a while…"

Ahiru's back straightened as Fakir spoke. He seemed almost too calm…

"What…?"

"I'm going to stop writing the story until you can walk again."

Ahiru's face split in two in a wide grin. Embracing Fakir, she thought she saw a womanly figure standing in the corner of the room. She pulled away from Fakir and mentally pushed away her thoughts of it being Mother.

"The story will only have stopped for a while without moving forwards, so nothing should happen."

Fakir spoke, blushing a bit. Ahiru seemed only too happy with the news.

"I'll be gone for a while. Don't move, alright?"

Fakir began walking away, Ahiru puffing out her cheeks.

"Is that supposed to be some kind of joke!?"

She called after him, beginning to smile. Time seemed to freeze as Uzura was staring outside the window almost stone-like. Mother's hands gently touched Ahiru's feet, weeping heard. Ahiru looked around but saw no one.

"My daughter, I'm sorry I cannot heal your beautiful feet…but I have located another piece of Fakir's stardust."

"Where?!"

Ahiru asked loudly, the figure of a woman played out as shadows against the wall. She pointed with her shadowed hand to the lake beyond the walls, the gloved hand doing the same movements as she.

"To the lake and into the forest…you are in the perfect condition to acquire the stardust…"

"I don't understand…"

"There's a tale of a blind ballerina dancer that danced until her feet bled and attracted a forest god. To be able to attain Fakir's stardust, you must get the both of them to each give you a piece of the same whole."

"I see…"

Ahiru touched her necklace and then looked up at Mother, frowning.

"But since Fakir is gone now, I'm going to burn his story of destroying Kinkan town."

"Ahiru, wait-"

Ahiru stood up on shaky legs, regretting it almost immediately as pain surged from her toes all the way up to her hips. Biting down hard on her lip, she managed to balance her way on different items so that she could make it to Fakir's study. Mother tried stopping her for some reason but her shadowed form couldn't peel off the walls and her gloved hands weren't powerful enough to grip onto her arms to drag her away.

"Fakir's stardust won't matter anymore if the town is destroyed! Even with his innocence, he won't be the same knowing that I chose for him to destroy the town instead!"

She tried shouting back to Mother. Mother suddenly gasped and faded away, Uzura becoming unfrozen. Ahiru squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe Fakir was right…maybe she should be careful of Mother…

The blue-eyed female pushed the study door open with surprise ease. Did Fakir forget to lock it? Peering inside, her mouth fell open. Piles upon piles upon piles of paper were stacked one on top of the other. Mother was evident in the corner of the room where the remaining candlelight supported her shadow.

"What's all this…?"

"The different stories he has written out…"

Mother spoke, trailing her shadowed hand along the spine of one book. Uzura began beating on her drum, making Mother turn invisible again. Ahiru hobbled over to Fakir's desk to find that he had stopped writing in the middle of a paragraph. Sitting down, her eyes trailed over the recent writings.

'_And Ahiru danced like the beautiful Princess Tutu she once was. In circles she danced until her feet bled and blistered, her classmates couldn't tear their gaze away from her grace. Even as trees fell through the roof of the school, she tried to dance until her legs gave way. With a hardened heart and will, she braved the storm until her knight appeared, saving the plain girl.'_

Ahiru's eyes widened.

"This…"

'_The knight will once again rise as Princess Tutu's protector. The legend of the Bleeding Ballerina is where the knight shall train.'_

Ahiru gasped, seeing Mother's turned down head in the corner once more, Uzura walking into the room.

"Why's Ahiru-chan crying-zura?"

Ahiru didn't waste time. She limped out of the room as best as she could and tried to find something sturdy to wrap her legs in.

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Ahiru arrived at the forest beyond the lake, breathing heavily as she forced herself to walk.

"FAKIR!"

She tried calling out his name, holding onto a stick to support her weight. The trees creaked and groaned in the wind, however, it was Mother who appeared as the tree's silhouette.

"Follow the wind, daughter…! He's in danger!"

Her voice stressed. Ahiru threw down her stick and began running out of sheer willpower. Sweat rolled down the sides of her temples as her knees threatened to cave. Strangely enough, the nature's sounds played out to sound like music. She came to a clearing in the meadows and saw Fakir dancing alongside a ballerina made out of the light.

"FAKIR!"

She called out, seeing that his eyes were void of consciousness and that the ballerina had begun to envelope him in her light, spiriting him away bit by bit. In desperate attempt, Ahiru tried to run to him but ended up stumbling and hitting the ground, tears of desperation springing to her eyes. A sudden force lifted her up from the ground, making her turn her head to see no one. Immediately, she changed into Princess Tutu, feeling a strange numbness in her feet. Shaking off the feeling, she approached the dancing ballerina and gestured with her hands to ask her to dance. The ballerina turned her head away from Fakir and bowed, beginning to dance with her. The form of a man made out of leaves took shape before Tutu, stopping the ballerina's momentarily. He seemed to hold his hand out to the two of them, they bowed instantly and began to twirl around. The ghost ballerina tried to dance with Fakir again, but Tutu stood in her way, shaking her head.  
"You have already moved on. You cannot love Fakir."

The ballerina ghost posed her body for the sign of love and moved it then to death, falling to her knees crying. Tutu shook her head and smiled, holding out her hand to her.

"Fakir is an amazing person…but wouldn't you rather love the one who has been kind with you?" She began dancing with the god, the ghost ballerina gasping and standing up. Tutu stopped and smiled again, taking their hands and joining them together. The forest god seemed to smile and dance, the ballerina staring at him.

"He's been waiting to dance a pas de deux with you."

Tutu spoke, the mute ballerina smiled broadly before dancing alongside him. Tutu watched for a while as they danced, Fakir groaning as he woke up. His eyes widened as he looked at Tutu.

"You're…"

The spirits invited her to dance, she nodding and beginning to do so as a background dancer. Once again, her feet began bleeding. The female ghost smiled and looked up at her lover.

"I'll help her."

Tutu and Fakir's eyes widened. The forest god could speak!? Vines sprouted up from the ground, holding up Tutu as she fell over in a ballet pose, the leaves wrapping around her feet, healing them. When the vines set her down, the forest god and female ghost embraced each other, turning into dust. Tutu raised her hands to collect it. Smiling, she turned to Fakir and kneeled next to him, holding out his stardust.

"You…came…"

Ahiru smiled and nodded, presenting him his innocence.

"You know…you don't need to try so hard to be a knight…I'll protect you, too, you know…"

"Ah-"

He was about to speak but the stardust broke apart, entering his body in a warm glow. Fakir's body went limp from exhaustion and strain. Her feather appeared before her, Tutu grabbing hold of it and closing her eyes. In a burst of feathers, she had disappeared from the clearing and was transported home.

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AN: -rubbing eyes- uwa…Princess Tutu…lives again…sugoi. I'm re-watching the anime and find that they should have a continued series…it ended too abruptly. But that's just me. I'm also very glad –spoiler—Mytho ends up with Rue and now Ahiru. That would have been too clichéd. –Insert tired happy face- Onto college life soon. Yay…-falls apart-


End file.
